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AGM 11 February 2024 - Finance Report for the year Jan-Dec 2023
Examination of Accounts

Whilst it is not a requirement of SURC to have the accounts audited they do need to be
“examined” occasionally. Having taken over the accounts in January 2022, I thought it good
practice to have them examined - which took place early in 2023 and they were duly approved.
The examiner was an accountant suggested by Martyn Neads.

Review of 2023:
I am pleased to report that in 2023 Income has actually exceeded Expenditure by £2,414. The
SURC bank balance at End-Of-Year was a healthy £121,913.

Considerable thanks must be given to those who have so generously given their time and money
(both directly and indirectly).

The loss of our minister, Martyn, at the end of August has had a number of financial implications.
Our income from Skinner Street and Wareham towards Manse expenses has now stopped.
However we no longer pay the Manse Council Tax and Water Bills or the Minister’s telephone
allowance and expenses.

Direct Giving went down in 2023 primarily due to the loss of some regular givers in the second
half of the year – which also impacted the amount of Gift Aid the church could re-claim. However,
Fundraising increased again to a remarkable £7,983 and Lettings went up by over £5,000 to
£7,425 thanks largely to the weekly Slimming World booking.

The church also received a number of generous donations totalling £5,657 - mainly towards
specific expenditure, namely replacing kitchen equipment and curtains for the large hall.
Two grants were received in 2023 - £7,500 from the Synod towards our Mission Enabler’s third
year salary, and £9,529 from Awards for All which is reserved for specific activities, little of which
has been spent to date.

Interest on Savings went up from just £454 to £3,552.

Overall Expenditure went down slightly in 2023 despite the majority of costs increasing. This was
primarily due to less money being spent on Repairs/Sundry and Capital Refurbishment (down by
£4,650 in total), and also the reduced Manse related costs.

However, energy costs have gone up since our previous contract ended at the end of May. Unit
charges are now about 3 times higher. Whilst the costs have increased to £4,451 in 2023, the
impact of the increase is really only becoming apparent now that the heating is in use. The Gas
bill alone for the last 5 weeks of 2023 (paid in January 2024 accounts) was £1,590 - equivalent to
36% of the total energy costs (i.e. Gas + Electricity) in 2023! Every effort must be made to keep
these costs to a reasonable minimum.
2024 and Beyond:

Predicting the future financial situation is never precise. 12 months ago I thought Expenditure
would exceed Income by around £11,000 but then I had not expected SURC to receive a grant of
£9,529 or Donations of £5,657 – or Martyn to leave.

However, what we can assume in 2024 is that general Expenditure will increase, and in particular
the Energy costs. Income is more likely to go down than increase as we now have less givers. It
will also be challenging for Fund Raising and Lettings to match or improve on 2023.
At a recent church meeting, the church decided that the Ministry and Mission (M&M) costs we
pay to the Synod should continue at the same level in 2024.

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